Sunday 4 May 2014

Vera the Viral Pigeon


Nearly two weeks since I brought Vera the pigeon suffering from a killer Paramyxovirus home. The Virus has taken a strong hold on her and it remains to be seen if she will eventually beat it. I am tube feeding her 3 times a day as well as hand feeding her grain.

Standing still her balance is OK, but when she tries to pick up and swallow a grain, she is unable to control her neck torsion and contorts into a violent cartwheel across the floor.  (Short video clip below.)



I have to grab her and hold her still for a minute to regain her balance.
I am confident of keeping her alive for a while, but may well have to consider having her put to sleep unless she can fly and feed herself without the contortions. Meanwhile she is content to be cared for and watch my dog eating !

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